Efecto de los procesos de congelación y descongelación sobre los almidones en un alimento a base de maíz

Abstract

We studied the effect that subsequent cooking and freezing has on the starch content and the glycemic index (GI) of a corn flour-based food (bun). The food was made and exposed to cooking and freezing a couple of times. The starch content was compared with that of precooked corn flour and significant differences were found (F= 5.84; p= 0.005), with an important increase in the retrograded starch content due to thermic treatments. Glycemic response curves were conducted for a sample of healthy individuals, who consumed the food submitted to the treatments and wholegrain bread. Significant differences were found (F= 4.21; p= 0.034) and a GI of 67.9 for the bun submitted to three cooking and two freezing processes. Results suggest that the thermic treatments induced the appearance of a retrograded starch proportion equivalent to dietary fiber which could be beneficial for the body.